One of my favorite blogs, www.repmanblog.com, posted recently about “introverts making a go of it in professions dominated by extroverts.”  Blogger Steve Cody admits that he has taken improvisation and stand-up comedy to get over his innate shyness.

How many of us in public relations are actually introverts and not extroverts?   In her post this winter about her shyness, blogger Dushka Zapata writes that “according to the Meyers [sic] Briggs type indicator, an ‘extrovert’ and an ‘introvert’ are defined based on where they get their energy. An extrovert is ‘energized by the outer world of people and things’ and an introvert is ‘energized by the inner world of thoughts and ideas.’”

This difference must be what makes some of us PR people gravitate towards writing (my favorite) and some of us towards event planning (would rather have a root canal).  What part of PR do you hate?   That will probably tell you a lot about which side you fall on, introvert or extrovert.

Graphic from http://myers.team-technology.co.uk

Does this sound familiar?  “…a time phenomenon, a product of the greatly accelerated rate of change in society.  It arises from the superimposition of a new culture on an old one.   It is culture shock in one’s own society.  But its impact is far worse.”

This is the theme of many new social media books on the market now – the disruption of society, the inability to adapt, the loss of the industrial age as replaced by the information age as replaced by an even faster information age.   

Yet, Alvin Toffler wrote these words as long ago as 1970, when his groundbreaking work “Future Shock” was published.   He points out that “for most Peace Corps men (a bit dated gender reference there!), in fact most travelers, have the comforting knowledge that the culture they left behind will be there to return to.   The victim of future shock does not.”

The only solution to deal with it is to change your attitude, and that is why it is extremely difficult.  Raging against the machine is futile.   Only those who can force themselves to adapt will survive.    Here’s what I’ve learned:

• It is natural to wish for another scenario.   Spend a moment, honor the time that you treasured, and embrace the new.   
• Join organizations that are characterized by generations that are at least 15 years younger than you are.   If you spend too much time in church, book clubs, or other groupings that are either too small for innovation or too dominated by older, traditional mindsets, you will only absorb their inertia.
• Network (coffee, drinks) with younger people.  This will help you learn more about how they are coping, and what kinds of job skills they are applying. 
• Use social media tools such as twitter to stay informed about trends.   It could save your professional life.
• Beef up on your humor and wit.   Businesses equate negative, humorless people with those who can’t adapt.   Humor is perceived as flexibility and adaptability to any kind of situation.  
• Keep moving – cement trucks have constantly rolling barrels for a reason.

Even though the current roster of social media books is harping on a 40-year-old theme, they are crucial to getting a disbelieving society to change.   Repetition of message is key.

Wyeth's "Christina's World"

January 1, 2010 is now just a few weeks away.    One more year gone.   What are you wistful about?   What do you want to accomplish?

The most tormented I’ve ever felt was when I worked as a secretary at an ad agency in Providence in the early 80s.    The son of the owner would come in every now and then, and he was working towards his law degree.  The kid had the brain of an avocado, but I knew that soon he’d be outearning me by a ridiculous amount.   It made me wistful.

I decided to go for a master’s degree in communications.   It felt right.   I applied for some very obscure scholarships, and was successful.  With my new degree, I went from $5.00/hour to $26K a year.  

What are you longing for?

Laura Kinoshita

Today’s guest post is by Laura Kinoshita, a senior communications consultant overseeing healthcare campaigns with Hafner Creative Communications.   Laura moved to Hawaii in 2001 to work with astronomers at the W. M. Keck Observatory on Mauna Kea. Before that, she was managing supervisor at Fleishman-Hilliard. Laura is a member of PRSA and the International Social Media Association. Follow Laura on Twitter at @lkinoshita. 

Six Essential Qualifications of a Social Media Manager

According to the job boards, you’ll soon be working with a ‘social media manager.’ Harrah’s Entertainment, Hewlett-Packard, Kodak, Starbucks and even SAP are all recruiting for social media managers. Yet, chances are these positions will be supporting the marketing and sales directors, not the public relations or corporate communications departments, where they belong. Might it be time to look at your position description, and see where social media fits within your organization?

Where Does Social Media Belong?

Social media tends to get mixed in between marketing and reputation management, just as public relations gets confused with marketing. Two marketing scholars, Philip Kotler and Gary Armstrong, make the distinction between public relations and marketing by describing marketing as “actions that build and maintain desirable exchangeable relationships” (Principles of Marketing, 2008). They consider marketing as an exchange of value, an activity where ownership of money, contact information or other property changes hands.

Left to the marketing or sales departments, social media runs the risk of becoming a stream of promotional links and ads. However, when managed by a communications or public relations director, social media has a better chance to support CEO goals with better communication, cooperation, ethical handling of issues, customer loyalty and brand equity.

Most marketers want social media to improve search engine rankings, grow Web site traffic, convert ‘browsers’ to ‘buyers,’ increase click-thru-rates and other types of “exchange-related“ functions. Inbound marketing tends to get wrapped up in giveaways, contests, rewards or other tactics mostly designed to boost e‑commerce traffic and sales. Public relations directors, in contrast, want to strategically build relationships among a variety of stakeholders — community residents, journalists, legislators, investors, employees — just to name a few.

CEOs who fail to understand how social media can support corporate objectives put their organization and brand at risk. Like public relations, social media must be managed as a strategic function across the enterprise, not just left to the sales department as a lead generation tool.
The Social Media Job Description

Consider if the following components would make good additions to your own job description, or suggest to your HR manager if these requirements might be added to the social media manager position description:

1. Reports to the Communications Director.
2. Has a bachelor’s degree in communications, marketing or journalism, ideally with 6-10 years experience (with at least two year’s experience with social media).
3. Plays a lead role in the company’s overall communications strategy. 
4. Advises department teams on a broad communications strategy.
5. Identifies and shares important issues and trends.
6. Has superior writing and strategic thinking skills.

Jobs to Avoid

The following job requirements (taken from actual job listings) probably indicate a company is missing the social media concept entirely. Rethink your strategy if the job description includes any of the following:

• Applicants need to submit their Twitter profile, and/or have a minimum number of followers.
• The job description includes vague or unprofessional words like “buzz” or “badass.”
• Applicants have to compete in some sort of contest, and the candidate with the most “sign-ups” wins (http://jobs.vidli.com/apply/cf1c/421c).

CEOs who give social media enterprise-level visibility and support will see dramatic results in their business. Highly qualified employees will be the difference between social media campaigns that churn and stagnate, and those that grow active, loyal and engaged members over time.